{"id":11101,"date":"2026-09-15T13:12:11","date_gmt":"2026-09-15T13:12:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/?p=11101"},"modified":"2026-09-15T13:12:11","modified_gmt":"2026-09-15T13:12:11","slug":"part-17-marcuss-trusted-cfo-owned-the-project-that-could-ruin-us-and-his-explanation-turned-stephens-carefully-built-scheme-inside-out","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/?p=11101","title":{"rendered":"PART 17 \u2013 Marcus\u2019s Trusted CFO Owned the Project That Could Ruin Us, and His Explanation Turned Stephen\u2019s Carefully Built Scheme Inside Out"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Marcus called Ben Ortiz seven times.<\/p>\n<p>The first six calls went unanswered.<\/p>\n<p>On the seventh, someone picked up and said nothing.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cBen.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Silence.<\/p>\n<p>Marcus put the phone on speaker.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe know about MDO Capital.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>A long breath came through the line.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI figured Rachel would find it.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou figured?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou own Harbor Point.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cTechnically, MDO holds the controlling interest.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThat means you own it.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNot exactly.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Marcus laughed once.<\/p>\n<p>The sound contained no humor.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI have spent a week listening to people explain how things aren\u2019t exactly what the documents say.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Ben remained quiet.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhere are you?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cMy house.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI\u2019m coming.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Marcus stared at the phone.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNo?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou need to hear me before you decide what you think happened.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI trusted you with every account in my company.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI know.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou used my voice authorization.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe hardware token was yours.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThen explain.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Ben exhaled.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cStephen had the token.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHow?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI gave it to him.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Marcus closed his eyes.<\/p>\n<p>Elaine sat slowly.<\/p>\n<p>Even Rachel went silent.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhen?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cEight months ago.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhy?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe told me Harbor Commercial needed temporary verification access for a financing package.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou handed an outside attorney my corporate authentication token?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Marcus turned away.<\/p>\n<p>I recognized the expression on his face.<\/p>\n<p>He wanted to shout.<\/p>\n<p>Instead, he asked, \u201cWhy would my CFO do something that stupid?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Ben answered quietly.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cBecause I was trying to keep Harbor Point alive.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Marcus looked back.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cBecause you owned it.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cPart of it.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cEnough.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Rachel interrupted.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cBen, do not destroy or alter any records.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI haven\u2019t.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cDo not access MDO systems.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI understand.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cDo not contact Stephen.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI haven\u2019t spoken to him since yesterday.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Marcus stared at the phone.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhy yesterday?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe called after Nora\u2019s DNH transfer failed.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat did he want?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cMoney.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cFrom you?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe wanted me to pressure Harbor Commercial into releasing additional funds.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAnd?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI refused.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Marcus laughed bitterly.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThat\u2019s where you drew the ethical line?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Ben did not defend himself.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The answer surprised Marcus.<\/p>\n<p>Ben continued.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI crossed the line long before yesterday.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cStart at the beginning.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>There was a pause.<\/p>\n<p>Then Ben told us Harbor Point had not begun as Stephen\u2019s project.<\/p>\n<p>It began as Ben\u2019s.<\/p>\n<p>Six years earlier, before the river district became fashionable, Ben had assembled several parcels through MDO Capital.<\/p>\n<p>He intended to develop a modest office-and-residential complex.<\/p>\n<p>Then Stephen approached him.<\/p>\n<p>Stephen had investors.<\/p>\n<p>Political contacts.<\/p>\n<p>Development experience.<\/p>\n<p>Most importantly, he claimed he could bring Hale Urban Design in as the anchor design firm.<\/p>\n<p>Ben agreed.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat did I know?\u201d Marcus asked.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNothing about my ownership.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhy?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cConflict of interest.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThat\u2019s precisely why you should have told me.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI know.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Stephen suggested that Ben transfer day-to-day control to Harbor Point Development while MDO retained beneficial ownership.<\/p>\n<p>On paper, Stephen became the visible developer.<\/p>\n<p>Behind it, Ben remained financially exposed.<\/p>\n<p>For several years, the project grew.<\/p>\n<p>So did its debt.<\/p>\n<p>Then costs increased.<\/p>\n<p>An investor withdrew.<\/p>\n<p>Presales slowed.<\/p>\n<p>Stephen began moving money between entities to hide shortfalls.<\/p>\n<p>Ben discovered some of it.<\/p>\n<p>Not all.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAnd you stayed quiet,\u201d Marcus said.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhy?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cBecause if Harbor Point collapsed, I lost almost everything.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHow much did you invest?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Ben hesitated.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cPersonally?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThree point six million.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Marcus stared.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhere did you get three point six million?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYears of bonuses. Investments. Refinancing my house.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Marcus sat down.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou risked your entire life on a project and never told me.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThen when it failed, you let Stephen pledge mine.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Ben\u2019s voice broke slightly.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI never authorized the nine-million-dollar guarantee.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou gave him the token.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI believed it was for lender verification.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou are my CFO.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI know.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cStop saying that.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Silence.<\/p>\n<p>Marcus pressed both hands against the table.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat did you know about Elaine\u2019s loans?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNot until later.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhen?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAbout nine months ago.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAnd Meridian?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThree months ago.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Marcus stared.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou knew Caroline had borrowed eleven million against Hale Urban Design for three months?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI knew there were irregular guarantees. I didn\u2019t know why.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhy didn\u2019t you tell me?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Ben\u2019s answer came slowly.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cBecause Stephen told me if I exposed the guarantees, Harbor Commercial would accelerate everything and Harbor Point would collapse.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAnd your three point six million with it.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>There it was.<\/p>\n<p>Not hatred.<\/p>\n<p>Not family revenge.<\/p>\n<p>Fear.<\/p>\n<p>The same ingredient underneath almost every bad decision we had uncovered.<\/p>\n<p>Ben had not spent twenty years resenting Daniel.<\/p>\n<p>He had simply been afraid to lose what he had built.<\/p>\n<p>And that had been enough.<\/p>\n<p>Rachel asked, \u201cWho created Marcus\u2019s synthetic approval?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI don\u2019t know.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWho had the token after you?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cStephen.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cDid he return it?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhen?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThree days later.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cDid you inspect the access logs?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhy?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI had no reason to think\u2014\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Rachel interrupted.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou had every reason.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Ben went quiet.<\/p>\n<p>I looked at Marcus.<\/p>\n<p>He seemed older than he had a week earlier.<\/p>\n<p>Perhaps leadership ages people fastest when they discover that trust is not the same thing as control.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cBen,\u201d I said.<\/p>\n<p>He recognized my voice.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNora.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhy send Elaine that message?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cBecause Stephen knows Rachel is getting close.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cTo what?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe missing Harbor money.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Rachel leaned forward.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat missing money?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNot the six million routed through Stephen\u2019s entities. Another transfer.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHow much?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThree point two million.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Rachel began typing.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhere?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI don\u2019t know.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHow do you know it exists?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI found a reconciliation mismatch last month.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAnd you didn\u2019t report it?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Marcus shut his eyes.<\/p>\n<p>Ben continued quickly.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI confronted Stephen. He told me it was temporary bridge financing.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cTo whom?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe wouldn\u2019t say.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThen why mention it now?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cBecause yesterday he said something.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe said if Harbor Point failed, at least Daniel\u2019s family would finally pay what it owed.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Elaine whispered, \u201cHe still thinks this is about Dad.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Ben continued.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI realized he was never trying to save the project the way I thought.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Marcus looked at the phone.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe was using it.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cFor what?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cTo pull money out of Hale-related assets.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Rachel stopped typing.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThree point two million.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cCould that be the money he actually wanted?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI don\u2019t know.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>She searched the records already preserved.<\/p>\n<p>The amount appeared in a Harbor Point subsidiary.<\/p>\n<p>Then disappeared through two consulting entities.<\/p>\n<p>The final destination was not immediately visible.<\/p>\n<p>Rachel asked Ben for credentials.<\/p>\n<p>He provided them.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhy cooperate now?\u201d Marcus asked.<\/p>\n<p>Ben did not answer immediately.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cBecause I watched you put Westlake up for sale.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Marcus frowned.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI haven\u2019t sold it.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI know.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou were in the meeting.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cSo?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou were willing to lose your own asset to protect employees from something I helped create.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Ben\u2019s voice became quieter.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI realized I had spent years telling myself I was protecting the company while making sure somebody else would absorb my losses.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Marcus said nothing.<\/p>\n<p>Ben continued.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI\u2019m resigning.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou don\u2019t get to clean this up with a resignation.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI know.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou may face charges.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI know.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cStop saying that.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI don\u2019t have a better answer.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Marcus ended the call.<\/p>\n<p>For several seconds, nobody moved.<\/p>\n<p>Then Rachel said, \u201cWe need Ben\u2019s devices.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Marcus nodded.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe\u2019ll cooperate.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou don\u2019t know that.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>He looked toward me.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cBut I\u2019m finished confusing trust with evidence.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>That was the right answer.<\/p>\n<p>Thomas arrived forty minutes later.<\/p>\n<p>Rachel explained MDO Capital.<\/p>\n<p>He listened with the weary expression of a man whose retirement plans were moving farther away by the hour.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cCan Ben\u2019s ownership affect the Harbor guarantee?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cPossibly,\u201d Rachel said. \u201cIt gives him a financial motive and creates undisclosed conflicts.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHelpful for us?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHelpful for proving the financing process was compromised.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNot necessarily for voiding the lender\u2019s rights.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cCorrect.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Marcus asked, \u201cWhat happens to Ben?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Thomas answered.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThat depends on what he knowingly participated in.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cCould he go to prison?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>No one softened it.<\/p>\n<p>Rachel then found the first break in the three-point-two-million-dollar trail.<\/p>\n<p>A consulting company had forwarded $2.7 million to an investment account.<\/p>\n<p>The account holder was hidden behind a private trust.<\/p>\n<p>Thomas obtained the trustee name.<\/p>\n<p>Not Stephen.<\/p>\n<p>Not Caroline.<\/p>\n<p>Not Elaine.<\/p>\n<p>A woman named Margaret Voss.<\/p>\n<p>Elaine stared.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cMy mother?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Caroline looked equally shocked.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cShe\u2019s alive?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Elaine turned sharply.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat do you mean?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Caroline seemed to realize she had said too much.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cStephen told me she died.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Elaine stood.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cOur mother died fourteen years ago.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Caroline shook her head.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThat\u2019s what he told me too.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Marcus looked between them.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat are you saying?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Rachel searched public records.<\/p>\n<p>Margaret Voss had not died.<\/p>\n<p>No death certificate existed.<\/p>\n<p>Instead, property records placed a Margaret Anne Voss in Oregon.<\/p>\n<p>Age seventy-eight.<\/p>\n<p>Elaine sat down slowly.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThat can\u2019t be her.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Rachel found a driver-license verification through the investigator.<\/p>\n<p>A photograph arrived.<\/p>\n<p>Elaine made a sound I had never heard from another human being.<\/p>\n<p>Not quite a cry.<\/p>\n<p>Not quite a word.<\/p>\n<p>She touched the screen.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThat\u2019s my mother.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Stephen had told his sister their mother was dead.<\/p>\n<p>He had told his wife the same thing.<\/p>\n<p>For fourteen years.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhy?\u201d Marcus asked.<\/p>\n<p>Elaine could not answer.<\/p>\n<p>Rachel opened the trust receiving Harbor Point money.<\/p>\n<p>Margaret was beneficiary.<\/p>\n<p>Stephen was trustee.<\/p>\n<p>The $2.7 million remained there.<\/p>\n<p>Untouched.<\/p>\n<p>That did not look like ordinary theft.<\/p>\n<p>It looked like payment.<\/p>\n<p>Caroline whispered, \u201cWhat did Margaret know?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>I thought of Arthur\u2019s confession.<\/p>\n<p>Daniel\u2019s note.<\/p>\n<p>Northbridge.<\/p>\n<p>Stephen\u2019s obsession.<\/p>\n<p>Maybe Arthur had not been the only parent hiding the truth from his children.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe need to speak to her,\u201d I said.<\/p>\n<p>Elaine looked terrified.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cShe thinks I abandoned her.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe don\u2019t know what she thinks.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cStephen told me she was dead.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAnd what did he tell her about you?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Elaine covered her face.<\/p>\n<p>Nobody knew.<\/p>\n<p>Rachel\u2019s investigator located a telephone number.<\/p>\n<p>Elaine could not make the call.<\/p>\n<p>So I did.<\/p>\n<p>A woman answered after four rings.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHello?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Her voice was thin but clear.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cMrs. Voss?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYes?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cMy name is Nora Hale.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Silence.<\/p>\n<p>Then a small intake of breath.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cDaniel\u2019s Nora?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The familiarity startled me.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cOh, my God.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Elaine began crying.<\/p>\n<p>Margaret heard it.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWho is there?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>I looked at Elaine.<\/p>\n<p>She nodded.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYour daughter.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Nothing came through the phone.<\/p>\n<p>Then Margaret whispered one word.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cElaine?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Elaine leaned toward the speaker.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cMom?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Margaret began sobbing.<\/p>\n<p>I looked away.<\/p>\n<p>Some moments do not belong to witnesses.<\/p>\n<p>When Margaret could speak again, Elaine asked the question that had waited fourteen years.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhy did you leave?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Margaret sounded confused.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI didn\u2019t.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cStephen told me you moved away and then died.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe told me you wanted nothing to do with me.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Elaine stared at the phone.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Margaret continued.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe said Marcus didn\u2019t want me around your new family.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Marcus closed his eyes.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThat\u2019s a lie.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Margaret heard him.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cMarcus?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI\u2019m sorry.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou have nothing to apologize for.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Elaine wiped her face.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cMom, Stephen sent money to a trust for you.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Margaret stopped crying.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat money?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cTwo point seven million.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI don\u2019t have two point seven million.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cStephen is trustee.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Margaret became very quiet.<\/p>\n<p>Then she said, \u201cThat isn\u2019t for me.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Rachel leaned forward.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat do you mean?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Margaret heard the unfamiliar voice.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWho is that?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>I explained Rachel\u2019s role.<\/p>\n<p>Margaret hesitated.<\/p>\n<p>Then spoke.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cArthur gave Stephen something before he died.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cA list of people.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cVictims?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThen who?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cPartners.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>I felt a chill.<\/p>\n<p>Margaret continued.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cPeople Arthur said helped him hide money from Daniel.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Thomas leaned closer.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cDid you ever see the list?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWho was on it?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI remember only one name.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhose?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Margaret answered.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cBenjamin Ortiz\u2019s father.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Marcus stared at the phone.<\/p>\n<p>Ben\u2019s father had not merely been connected to Harbor Point through his son.<\/p>\n<p>The Ortiz family had been connected to Arthur Voss decades earlier.<\/p>\n<p>And suddenly Ben\u2019s investment in Stephen\u2019s project looked far less accidental than any of us had believed.<\/p>\n<hr>\n<h2><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/?p=11102\">Click here to continue reading: PART 18: Ben\u2019s Father Had Helped Arthur Hide Money Decades Earlier, and the Missing Millions Revealed Why Harbor Point Was Never Really a Development Project<\/a><\/strong><\/h2>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Marcus called Ben Ortiz seven times. The first six calls went unanswered. On the seventh, someone picked up and said nothing. \u201cBen.\u201d Silence. Marcus put the phone on speaker. \u201cWe &hellip; <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":11084,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-11101","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-insightdrama"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11101","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=11101"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11101\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":11121,"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11101\/revisions\/11121"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/11084"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=11101"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=11101"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=11101"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}